The Pig gives back to first responders

CHARLESTON — All Piggly Wiggly Carolina Co. stores across South Carolina and coastal Georgia will take part in a fundraising effort starting Wednesday and ending Sept. 13. to benefit The 911 Club.

The 911 Club is a Charleston-based nonprofit support group for the survivors of police officers, firefighters and EMS personnel killed in the line of duty throughout the company’s service area.

The new nonprofit is the creation of former law enforcement officer Don Campagna. After returning from service aboard the USS Intrepid during Vietnam, Campagna became a police officer and worked in Richland County. A subsequent assignment was teaching at the police academy and one of the requests of the staff was to attend funerals of those lost in the line of duty as an expression of sympathy.

“We were losing 20 officers a year,” he said. “I’ve seen the effects of this first hand and it always bother me that we never had anything for the families. I wanted to have something that went beyond expressions of sympathy. Nationwide we lose one first responder every day. It’s a loss to the country, it’s a loss to the community and it’s a loss to the family.”

The effort comes as part of The Pig’s annual fundraising campaign tied to its Piggly Wiggly Charity Golf Classic, a tournament held simultaneously at four Charleston-area golf courses to raise money for local charitable organizations. This year’s tournament will take place Sept. 30, and leading up to the event, The Pig has offered the opportunity for customers to make a donation of $1 or more at checkout during the months of August and September.

For the week of Sept. 7-13, all donations made at checkout will directly benefit The 911 Club and families of first responders the organization serves.

“As we remember and honor those first responders lost on 9/11, it is natural for Piggly Wiggly to support local families who suffer the loss of loved ones who make our homes and communities safer every day,” said David Schools, president and CEO, Piggly Wiggly Carolina Company Inc.

“Piggly Wiggly has always given back to our community, and its strong support for first responders can serve as an example to all of us,” said Don Campagna, founder of The 911 Club. “When a tragedy occurs, we provide the survivors with immediate financial assistance and grief counseling. We’re not just there for the funeral. We stay involved as long as they need our help.”

When there is a fatality, someone from the department and someone from the 911 club will go to see the family.

“They live payday-to-payday like the rest of us. One of the concerns the family always has is what will happen to us now,” he said. ”We want to be able to hand the widow or widower a check for $10,000 and get them through.”

The plan is to provide families with a professional team pro bono that includes an attorney, a grief counselor and a financial adviser — people they can turn to who will make sure they know how to adapt to the new reality without the first responder, such as living on less income, getting their lives back together with the grief counselor. We want to be able to provide them with a safety net after the fact.”

The 911 Club follows along the lines of what used to be called the 100 Clubs, Campagna said. When a police officer was killed in Detroit in 1952, 100 businessmen got together and put up $100 a piece to give to the family.

“It changes your world. This is a way that the community can show their support and appreciation for what first responders do and what their families do, because the families give up a lot,” Campagna said.

“Not everybody can afford $100, but if you can then join as a member. If you can afford $50, join as an associate member. First responders are $25 and survivors are free. The reason first responders have to pay is they cannot accept gratuities so we’ve made it as minimal as possible,” he said. “We think we are capable of building a template that can go nation wide. It really is something that I care deeply about.”

In-store donations benefiting The 911 Club will be accepted in area Piggly Wiggly Stores Sept. 7-13. Individuals can learn more about The 911 Club, make donations and become a member of the organization by visiting www.911clubusa.org which should be up and running by Sept. 6.

“I can’t say enough about the Piggly Wiggly support,” Campagna said. “It’s the kind of support nonprofits dream about and we’re going to do all we can to live up to that.”

ABOUT PIGGLY WIGGLY

A chain of grocery stores founded in 1947 in Charleston, S.C, Piggly Wiggly Carolina Company has grown to be the largest employee–owned retail company in the state. The company has more than 100 stores and over 4,000 employee owners throughout South Carolina and coastal Georgia.

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